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Showing posts with label Sara Pavlak McGuire. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sara Pavlak McGuire. Show all posts

Thursday, April 21, 2022

Chicago Premiere of When We Were Young and Unafraid Via AstonRep Theatre Company May 13 – June 12, 2022 at The Edge Off-Broadway Theater

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Chicago Premiere!

AstonRep Theatre Company Presents

WHEN WE WERE YOUNG AND UNAFRAID


By Sarah Treem

Directed by Sara Pavlak McGuire

May 13 – June 12, 2022 at The Edge Off-Broadway Theater


AstonRep Theatre Company is pleased to conclude its 2020-21 season with the Chicago premiere of Sarah Treem’s courageous drama When We Were Young and Unafraid, directed by Sara Pavlak McGuire*, playing May 13 – June 12, 2022 at The Edge Off-Broadway Theater, 1133 W. Catalpa Ave. in Chicago. Tickets are currently available at www.astonrep.com or by calling (773) 828-9129. I'll be out for the press opening Saturday, May 14th, so check back shortly for my full review. 

The cast includes JoAnn Birt, Halle Hoffman, Sean Kelly*, Julie Partyka and Claire Allegra Taylor. Understudies include Tess Galbiati, Hilary Hensler, Maddy Moderhack, Jack Rodgers and Effie Rose.

*Denotes AstonRep Company Members.

In the early 1970s, before Roe v. Wade, before the Violence Against Women Act, Agnes has turned her quiet bed and breakfast into one of the few spots where victims of domestic violence can seek refuge. But to Agnes’s dismay, her latest runaway, Mary Anne, is beginning to influence Agnes’s college-bound daughter Penny. As the drums of a feminist revolution grow louder outside of Agnes’s tiny world, Agnes is forced to confront her own presumptions about the women she’s spent her life trying to help.

Director Sara Pavlak McGuire* comments, “Against the backdrop of the early 1970s, Treem's play shines a light on the faces of women who fought (each in their own ways) to create lasting and powerful change in America. At the same time, this play provides a cautionary tale for today's woman of how close she may be to witnessing an oppression that this generation has not yet seen. And so we hope it provokes her to continue to fight; whether it be quietly from her home or loudly from the front lines. May she be inspired by the women in this story to use her voice and to help the women around her. After two years, we are honored to finally present the story of these four women and are thrilled to premiere it here in Chicago.”

The production team to date includes Jeremiah Barr* (scenic, props and specialty make-up design), kClare McKellaston (costume, hair and wig design) Samantha Barr* (lighting design, production manager), Robert Tobin* and Melanie Thompson* (sound design), Claire Yearman (intimacy director), Kathryn Greenlea (costume assistant), Maryah Paige (assistant lighting designer, assistant stage manager) and Kristi Roshto (stage manager).



COVID protocol: AstonRep is committed to providing a safe and enjoyable theatre-going experience. At this time, we will require all patrons to provide proof of vaccination when entering the theatre and patrons will be required to wear a face mask during the performance. As this guidance is rapidly evolving, so may our protocols, so please check our website for the most up to date information


Location: The Edge Off-Broadway Theater, 1133 W. Catalpa Ave., Chicago

Dates: Preview: Friday, May 13 at 7:30 pm

Press performance: Saturday, May 14 at 7:30 pm

Regular run: Sunday, May 14 – Sunday, June 12, 2022

Curtain Times: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 3 pm. 

Tickets: Previews: $10; Regular run: $20. Student/seniors discounts available. Tickets are currently available at www.astonrep.com or by calling (773) 828-9129.


About the Artists

Sarah Treem’s (Playwright) A Feminine Ending premiered at Playwrights Horizons and went on to productions at South Coast Repertory and Portland Center Stage, among others. Her play The How and the Why premiered at the McCarter Theater starring Mercedes Ruehl (with Emily Mann directing) and went on to productions at Interact Theatre and Trinity Repertory, among others. Sarah’s other plays include Empty Sky (Bloomington Playwrights Project), Orphan Island (Sundance Theater Lab), Human Voices (New York Stage and Film) and Mirror Mirror. She has been commissioned by Playwrights Horizons, Southcoast Repertory and Manhattan Theater Club, and developed work at the Ojai Playwrights Festival, the Screenwriters Colony, Hedgebrook and Yaddo. In addition to her theater career, Sarah wrote and produced all three seasons of the acclaimed HBO series In Treatment, for which she won a WGA award and was nominated for a Humanitas award. She was also a writer/producer for the HBO series How to Make it in America. She has taught playwriting at Yale University, where she earned her B.A. and M.F.A.

Sara Pavlak McGuire (Director) has been a company member with AstonRep since 2013, where she
serves as a member of the Artistic Core Leadership. Working primarily as an actor in Chicago, Sara has worked with many different companies around the city; namely Windy City Playhouse, Timeline Theatre, Remy Bumppo, Oak Park Festival Theatre, Filament Theatre, Hubris Productions, Spartan Theatre and of course her home at AstonRep. She is a two-time Jeff Award nominee (2011, 2018). She received the award in 2011 for her work in Agnes of God, with Hubris Productions. She has assistant directed several productions with AstonRep (Wit, The Lyons, The Laramie Project) and has served as casting director for the past seven years. Sara holds an MFA in acting from Western Illinois University.

 

About AstonRep Theatre Company

AstonRep Theatre Company was formed in the summer of 2008. Since then, the company has produced numerous full-length productions, along with their annual Writer’s Series. They are currently in residence at The Edge Theater. AstonRep Theatre Company is an ensemble of artists committed to creating exciting, intimate theatrical experiences that go beyond the front door to challenge audiences and spark discussion where the show is not the end of the experience: it is just the beginning. 

Friday, June 14, 2019

2019-20 Season Announced: AstonRep Theatre Company at The Edge Theater

Save the Dates:
AstonRep Theatre Company Announces 
2019-20 Season

AstonRep Theatre Company’s 2019-20 Season directors (top, l to r) Co-Artistic Directors Derek Bertelsen and Sara Pavlak McGuire and playwrights (bottom, l to r) Sarah Treem and Peter Shaffer.

EQUUS
By Peter Shaffer
Directed by Co-Artistic Director Derek Bertelsen


THE 11TH ANNUAL WRITERS SERIES


Chicago Premiere!
WHEN WE WERE YOUNG AND UNAFRAID
By Sarah Treem
Directed by Co-Artistic Director Sara Pavlak McGuire

Moving to The Edge Theater in Edgewater


AstonRep Theatre Company, under the artistic leadership of Derek Bertelsen and Sara Pavlak McGuire, is pleased to announce its 2019-20 season, to be presented at its new artistic home, The Edge Theater in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. 

AstonRep’s 2019-20 Season kicks off this fall with Peter Shaffer’s psychological thriller EQUUS, directed by Co-Artistic Director Derek Bertelsen. This winter, the season continues with AstonRep’s 11th ANNUAL WRITERS’ SERIES, a daylong festival of workshops from talented local and regional writers. The season concludes next spring with the Chicago premiere of Sarah Treem’s courageous drama WHEN WE WERE YOUNG AND UNAFRAID, directed by Co-Artistic Director Sara Pavlak McGuire.

EQUUS and WHEN WE WERE YOUNG AND UNAFRAID will be staged on The Edge Theater’s mainstage, 5451 N. Broadway St. in Chicago. The 11th annual WRITERS SERIES will be presented in the venue’s studio space, the Edge Off Broadway, 1133 W. Catalpa Ave. Tickets for all productions will go on sale at a later date. For additional information, visit www.astonrep.com.

AstonRep Theatre Company’s 2019-20 Season includes:

September 27 – October 27, 2019
EQUUS
By Peter Shaffer
Directed by Co-Artistic Director Derek Bertelsen
Press opening: Saturday, September 28 at 7:30 pm

Inspired by a true story, EQUUS sets out to explore the complex relationships between devotion and myth. When teenager Alan Strang’s pathological fascination leads him to blind six horses in a Hampshire stable, psychiatrist Martin Dysart is tasked with uncovering the motive behind the boy’s violent act. As Dysart delves into Alan’s world of twisted spirituality, passion and sexuality, he begins to question his own sanity and motivations in a world driven by consumerism.

Saturday, November 23, 2019
The 11TH ANNUAL WRITER’S SERIES
Titles to be announced.

A festival of talented local and regional writers who have an opportunity to workshop near-finished plays and works in development. Over the course of a day, five to seven new works are read by professional actors followed by focused talkback sessions – a time-honored celebration of artistic collaboration.

April 9 – May 10, 2020
WHEN WE WERE YOUNG AND UNAFRAID – Chicago Premiere!
By Sarah Treem
Directed by Co-Artistic Director Sara Pavlak McGuire
Press opening: Saturday, April 11 at 7:30 pm

In the early 1970s, before Roe v. Wade, before the Violence Against Women Act, Agnes has turned her quiet bed and breakfast into one of the few spots where victims of domestic violence can seek refuge. But to Agnes’s dismay, her latest runaway, Mary Anne, is beginning to influence Agnes’s college-bound daughter Penny. As the drums of a feminist revolution grow louder outside of Agnes’s tiny world, Agnes is forced to confront her own presumptions about the women she’s spent her life trying to help.

Artist Biographies

Sir Peter Shaffer (Playwright, Equus) plays include: Five-Finger Exercise (1960), The Private Ear, The Public Eye (both 1962) and The Royal Hunt of the Sun (1964). In 1965, Shaffer’s adroit farce Black Comedy was performed. Equus (1973; filmed 1977), dealing with a mentally disturbed stable boy's obsession with horses, and Amadeus (1979; filmed 1984), about the rivalry between Mozart and his fellow composer Antonio Salieri, were successes with both critics and the public. Later plays include the biblical epic Yonadab (1985), Lettice and Lovage (1987) and The Gift of the Gorgon (1992). Shaffer was knighted in 2001 and passed away in 2016.

Derek Bertelsen (Director, Equus) joined AstonRep in 2013 and he currently serves as Co-Artistic Director. Previous directing credits with AstonRep include Doubt, Next Fall, Wit, The Lieutenant of Inishmore, The Lyons, the world premiere of The Black Slot, The Laramie Project, and co-directing Eleemosynary with Jeremiah Barr. He produced the sold-out run of Four By Tenn, a festival of one-act plays by Tennessee Williams. He also serves as Artistic Director of The Comrades. Assistant director credits include Goodman and Steppenwolf. Regional credits include Festival 56, Shawnee Summer Playhouse, New Ground Theatre and five seasons at Timber Lake Playhouse.

Sarah Treem’s (Playwright, When We Were Young and Unafraid) A Feminine Ending premiered at Playwrights Horizons and went on to productions at South Coast Repertory and Portland Center Stage, among others. Her play The How and the Why premiered at the McCarter Theater starring Mercedes Ruehl (with Emily Mann directing) and went on to productions at Interact Theatre and Trinity Repertory, among others. Sarah’s other plays include Empty Sky (Bloomington Playwrights Project), Orphan Island (Sundance Theater Lab), Human Voices (New York Stage and Film) and Mirror Mirror. She has been commissioned by Playwrights Horizons, Southcoast Repertory and Manhattan Theater Club, and developed work at the Ojai Playwrights Festival, the Screenwriters Colony, Hedgebrook and Yaddo. In addition to her theater career, Sarah wrote and produced all three seasons of the acclaimed HBO series "In Treatment," for which she won a WGA award and was nominated for a Humanitas award. She was also a writer/producer for the HBO series "How to Make it in America." She has taught playwriting at Yale University, where she earned her B.A. and M.F.A.

Sara Pavlak McGuire (Director, When We Were Young and Unafraid) has been a company member with AstonRep since 2013, where she primarily served as casting director. The 2018-19 season was her first as Co- Artistic Director.  Working primarily as an actor in Chicago, Sara has worked with many different companies around the city; namely Windy City Playhouse, Remy Bumppo, Oak Park Festival Theatre, Filament Theatre, Hubris Productions, Spartan Theatre and of course her home base at AstonRep. She is a two-time Jeff Award nominee (2011, 2018). She received the award in 2011 for her work in Agnes of God, with Hubris Productions. She has assistant directed several productions with AstonRep (Wit, The Lyons, The Laramie Project). Sara holds an MFA in acting from Western Illinois University.

About AstonRep Theatre Company:
AstonRep Theatre Company was formed in the summer of 2008. Since then, the company has produced 24 full-length productions and nine annual Writers’ Series. AstonRep Theatre Company is an ensemble of artists committed to creating exciting, intimate theatrical experiences that go beyond the front door to challenge audiences and spark discussion where the show is not the end of the experience: it is just the beginning.

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